


stupid is a strong word

by polaroidsandpeachtea



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, Insecurity, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Oikawa Tooru Wears Glasses, Oikawa Tooru is a Little Shit, Sad Sugawara Koushi, Self-Indulgent, Sugawara Koushi is a Little Shit, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Tutoring, no beta we die like daichi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 13:53:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29902065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/polaroidsandpeachtea/pseuds/polaroidsandpeachtea
Summary: It is not Koushi's fault he's failing college algebra, and that is a hill he is willing to die on. That doesn't change the fact, though, that he has two options.One: Let some guy he's never met tutor himTwo: Possibly fail the class and lose the creditThe answer is obvious, fail the class. Except for the fact that the tutor is one Oikawa Tooru, aka the pretty brunet in one of Koushi's other classes. Failing a class has never been less of an option.
Relationships: Oikawa Tooru/Sugawara Koushi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	stupid is a strong word

Alright, look, it's not Koushi's fault that he was close to failing college algebra. He won't even need that shit once he's graduated, he thinks, because he's going to be an literature teacher. Literature and math are worlds apart, really, and besides; he has more important things to worry about. Things like the pretty brunet in his comp one class, for one. He's content with his grade in algebra, it's high enough that he'll get the credit he needs to graduate later on, so why should he worry himself with it? The teacher, though, isn't so easily swayed. 

\--

"No, no- this can't be happening, oh my god-" Koushi says, eyes wide. He knew it was likely that he'd be receiving bad news the moment his professor asked him to come in during office hours, but he'd never thought it would be this bad.

"I'm sorry, Sugawara," the woman says, shaking her head. "That test was a large part of your grade and you knew it, are you sure you tried your best?"

The question felt like a slap to the face. "I tried _so_ hard," Koushi said quietly. "I really did, I studied every night for two weeks. I thought for sure I-" He cuts himself off, chewing on his bottom lip. 

"Alright, try and calm down. Take deep breaths, Sugawara." She sighs and adjusts her glasses, flipping through Koushi's test and looking through the work he'd scrawled out. "I'll tell you what, Sugawara, you're a good student. I know you're doing your best, the material just isn't clicking. We'll fix this. You said you studied every night for two weeks?" Koushi nods, arms crossed over his chest and the woman hums thoughtfully. "If you go through two weeks of tutoring, I'll let you retake the test. I'll take the higher of the two grades."

"Really? That's amazing, thank you so so much, I promise you won't regret it!" Koushi beams, finally starting to calm down. 

"You're welcome, wait just a moment and I'll get you the contact information for your tutor. I think I know the perfect person..." She opens a notebook and flips through, smiling when she finds what she was looking for and writes something down on a sticky note. "There," she says, handing the note to Koushi. "His name is Oikawa Tooru, he's the top student in my physics class. He can be a little... much... but I'm positive that he's the best choice."

Koushi nods, glancing briefly at the note before tucking it carefully into his bag. "Alright, great! I'll text him when I get back to my dorm. Thank you again, Chihaya-sensei." He waves with a grin when she shoos him away, then walks out of the office. 

True to his word, once Koushi got back to his dorm, he pulled out the note with his new tutor's contact information and his phone. After creating the new contact, he texts him.

**To: Oikawa**   
hi hi ! this is sugawara koushi, my professor gave me your number  
she said you could tutor me ? if not that's fine! i can find someone else

After a few minutes, Koushi's phone pinged with a notification. 

**From: Oikawa**   
hi! i literally just got an email from one of my professors about a student she needed me to tutor  
i guess she was talking about you

**To: Oikawa**   
i guess so  
when are you available first?

**From: Oikawa**   
she said she wanted us to start asap in the email sooo  
are you free tomorrow afternoon ? my last lecture ends at 3:40

**To: Oikawa**   
yep! meet at the library at 4 ?

**From: Oikawa**   
sure thing!  
see you then~

\--

The next day, Koushi got to the library first and claimed one of the study rooms, letting Oikawa know which one he'd be in. He scrolled aimlessly through his phone as he waited, only looking up when the door opened. When he saw who it was, he nearly dropped his phone. Of fucking course Oikawa Tooru is the pretty brunet from his comp class. Fate is a cruel mistress. 

"Sorry I'm late!" Oikawa says, smiling sheepishly as he closed the door behind him. "I got caught up outside the lecture hall, a group of people were there waiting."

"'S fine," Koushi waves a dismissive hand and puts his phone away. "Not like I'm particularly anxious to start doing _math_." He said the word like it left a bad taste in his mouth. 

Oikawa laughs, and it's a bright laugh that fills the room. Koushi decides very quickly that he likes that laugh _very_ much. "Despite what you may believe, math isn't out to get you, Suga-chan."

"Sure it is, I dedicated so many nights to it and it still yanked the rug out from under me." Koushi scrunches his nose in distaste as he pulls out his notebooks, shaking his head. 

"If math is something to conquer, I'll just have to be your night in shining armor, Suga-chan." Oikawa grins as he sets out his own notebooks, then pulls a glasses case from his bag. 

Honestly the fact that Oikawa evidently wears glasses was not fair at all, especially since he looked so _good_ in them. He never wore them during lectures, and they were undoubtedly going to be absolutely detrimental to Koushi's health. Koushi's newfound appreciation for glasses aside, there was work to be done. All thoughts of Oikawa's glasses were pushed to the back of his mind as the brunet started explaining one of the first concepts needed for the test. 

Once he thinks he understands, Koushi attempts a problem on his own. He lets Oikawa examine his work, proud smile disappearing when he takes in the frown on Oikawa's face. "I did it wrong, didn't I?"

"Yeah," Oikawa confirms with a sigh. "You did. I didn't teach it right, sorry, I'll show you in a different way."

"You don't have to be sorry, Oikawa," Koushi assures him quickly. "It's not your fault, I'm just kinda stupid-"

"No." Oikawa cuts him off, voice stern. "Don't even joke like that, if you don't understand this stuff then that means that you were never taught in a way you could comprehend it. That's not your fault. You're not stupid."

Koushi stares at Oikawa with wide eyes, shocked into silence. It's not like people have ever seriously told Koushi that he was stupid, but in high school it was often a joke amongst his friends. While he was one of the best in class overall, he struggled with maths severely.

* * *

**2nd Year**

"I'm telling you guys," Koushi grins, rocking back and forth on his heels. "I've got this one in the bag. I worked my ass off, I just _know_ I passed."

"Whatever you say, Suga," his friends exchange doubtful glances, and Koushi has to pretend he doesn't notice. 

Once the scores were posted, they all rushed to check. The further Koushi looks down the list, the fainter his smile grows. His name was near the bottom, and yep. That was definitely a failing grade. He sighs, but forces a grin on his face when one of his friends drapes an arm across his shoulders. 

"Shit, man, that sucks. Can't say I'm shocked, though, you always have been a little dim, eh?" He laughs and Koushi makes himself laugh along, nodding. 

"Yeah, true." 

The grade sits in Koushi's stomach, tying it into knots. He wants nothing more than to go to practice and try to forget, but his teacher asks him to stay after class. With a final goodbye to his friends, Koushi goes to the front of the room and waits for the rest of the class to clear out.

"Sugawara-kun," the teacher begins with a stern tone. "I expected better from you."

"Yes, sir." Koushi answers quietly, picking at the hem of his uniform's shirt. "I tried, though."

"But did you?" The teacher asks, frowning. He sighs and pulls his glasses off, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Didn't I advise you to spend less time goofing off with those teammates of yours and more time studying?"

"I _did_ study, though." Koushi protests, refusing to meet his teacher's eye. "I skipped practice to study, some days. On the days I went to practice I stayed up late once I got home to study. And this week, I- I haven't been to practice at all so I could prepare for the test. I'm benched for the next game because of it."

"Hm," the man acknowledges Koushi with a disapproving hum. "Well, there's nothing to be done, then. If this is all your best efforts amount to, maybe you aren't the bright student I thought you to be. That's my fault for overestimating you. My expectations were, evidently, unreasonable." He sits back in his chair and nods toward the door. "You're dismissed. Hopefully you practice better than you study, yeah?"

Judging by his tone, Koushi knew it was meant to be a joke. It was a joke in bad taste, though, and Koushi found his grip tightening impossibly more on his book bag as he nodded politely and turned on his heel to leave. 

He begins to accept, then, that he just isn't cut out for the whole 'math' thing. He wouldn't stop trying, but he stopped hoping for the best. The jokes didn't stop, of course, but soon Koushi learned to embrace them.

* * *

"Suga-chan," Oikawa's voice snaps Koushi out of his thoughts. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah... yeah, I'm fine!" Koushi assures, nodding quickly. "Sorry, I just-" He frowns, brows furrowed. "No one's ever said that to me."

"What, that you're not stupid?" Oikawa asks, then huffs with an expression of obvious distaste when Koushi hums in affirmation. "You should keep better company, Suga-chan. Now," his smile returns as he gets up and moves his chair to be next to Koushi's, "let's figure out how you learn best, yeah? Show me the notes you've taken during lectures for algebra and... which is your best course right now?"

Koushi thinks for a moment, then smiles. "World literature."

"Alright, show me your notes for that, too." 

Koushi does as he's told, handing over two separate notebooks. Oikawa flips through them, looking back and forth between the two notebooks with a thoughtful gaze. "Suga-chan," he starts, "why do you write your algebra notes the same way you do your notes for literature?"

"Huh?" Koushi frowns in confusion. "What do you mean? That's just how I take notes."

"Hm." Oikawa presses his lips into a firm line, eyes narrowed. "No good. I mean, for literature yes, it's fine. But algebra is an entirely different subject, one you struggle with, you shouldn't try and take notes in the same way. You can't memorize formulas the same way you can authors, no one can. I have a friend in a music course, he's having to take a math course for general credit, and while he takes notes in a similar way that you do for his music composition classes, he comes up with songs for formulas. He says he's always done that, the quadratic formula is to the tune of some One Direction song."

Koushi laughs at that, eyebrow quirked. "Really? That's awesome. So how do I take notes for algebra, I'm not the biggest fan of boybands."

Oikawa grins, shaking his head as he leans back and fixes Koushi with a hard gaze. Koushi feels very _seen_ and he isn't particularly fond of it. "Suga-chan, explain..." his eyes trail away just long enough to flip to a different page of Koushi's notes. "Pretend I know absolutely nothing, and don't take how I might learn into account, and explain this to me." He slides the notebook over, pointing at the page he was referencing. 

Albeit somewhat reluctantly, Koushi obliges, only glancing down at his notes briefly before he launches into an explanation. "The process of proper literary analysis has three steps, technically, but with little baby steps along the way. The first step in any literary analysis is a personal connection, how the piece makes you feel and your own unbiased interpretation of the piece excluding any outside information you may have. For scholarly essays, this part isn't as fully explored as the other steps because it's incredibly difficult to present a stable argument based solely on the individual experience. The next step, though, is where you start using literary devices used by the author to support your argument. It's pretty fun, actually, going through and marking up every metaphor and allusion and trying to decipher how it feeds into the theme, if it does at all. It's like trying to make sense of a map of a place you've maybe heard of, maybe seen pictures of, but have yet to visit yourself." Koushi continues to explain, grinning to himself and gesturing wildly with nearly every word. 

Oikawa has that same all-seeing gaze in his eyes, but it was paired with an amused smile, now. "Thank you, Suga-chan," he says once Koushi is done explaining, "That was very helpful. Do you have any blank notebooks?" Koushi nods, and Oikawa beams, flipping to the first page in Koushi's algebra notebook. "Great! Go ahead and get it out, we're rewriting every one of these notes."

"We're _what_ _?"_ Koushi asks, eyes wide as he freezes in his initial movement to get out his notebook. 

"Well, I guess technically _you're_ rewriting these notes-" Oikawa laughs at the near feral glare he receives at that. "I'm kidding! I'm going to help you, Suga-chan. But you need to rewrite these in a way that it will actually _help_ you. You're going to come up with a bunch of those fancy literary devices to pair with every formula and term! You'll remember it if it ties back to something you enjoy. Get comfy, we'll be here a while."

"Okay. Let's sit on the floor."

Oikawa's friendly smile wavers, eyes narrowing. "What?"

"Floor. We're sitting on it." Koushi says, smiling innocently. "I always sit on the floor, I spread my papers out all around me so I can see everything at once. Is that a problem?"

Koushi swears he sees Oikawa's eye twitch. "No! No problem here, the floor it is. The hard... dirty floor..." He looks down at the wood floor, nose scrunched in poorly disguised distaste. 

"Alright then," Koushi gathers his notebooks and book bag and moves to sit on the floor, back against the wall as he spreads his papers around him. "You plan on joining me, or are you just gonna sit there and keep looking pretty?"

Oikawa pauses in his self pity to smile brightly, eyes gleaming as he looked down at Koushi. "Aw, you think I'm pretty, Suga-chan?"

"Pretty damn annoying, right now." Koushi mumbles, just loud enough for Oikawa to hear and immediately protest. "I'm kidding, now c'mon. I'm not rewriting all of these by myself."

The brunet huffs, but still moves to sit next to Koushi on the floor, grumbling something about how if he'd known his study date would be with someone so _rude_ he'd have never agreed. (Needless to say, that earned him a punch to the shoulder.) 

"Is it really a study date if you're getting paid to be here?" Koushi asks, grinning.

Oikawa just frowns, head cocked to the side. "What do you mean paid?"

"...I'm giving you money to do this, I'm not going to let you go through this trouble without compensation."

"You will do nothing of the sort, Suga-chan!" Oikawa says, pointing an accusatory finger at Koushi. "I am doing this out of the absolute _kindness_ of my heart. Besides, Suga-chan's company is more than payment enough~" Koushi must look skeptical, because Oikawa bumps their shoulders together with a smile, different from the others he'd plastered on that day. "I'm serious! I thought I was going to be tutoring some dumb jock with calves bigger than my head, I got new pepper spray for this! I was _not_ about to get hate-crimed in my glasses. I'm too pretty to be a cliché like that."

Koushi eyes Oikawa for a long moment before shaking his head with a quiet laugh. "You're something else, Oikawa Tooru, you know it?"

"Mm, I've been told a time or two, yes." Oikawa says before clapping his hands together and looking at the papers laid out around them. "Alright! Let's get down to business, Suga-chan. You pick where we start and we'll go from there."

The two worked together to get through the notebook, Oikawa asking what Koushi wanted him to write before doing it without complaint (or much complaint, but still) and Koushi asked questions about what some terms meant so he could properly re-explain it to himself. After two hours, they had the entire notebook done, pages filled with clipped notecards, sticky-notes, and vibrant color from Koushi's highlighters.

Oikawa leaned against Koushi's shoulder with a proud smile. "We did it, Suga-chan. Now you have functional notes!" 

"Mhm," Koushi had a smile of his own as he stared down at the new notebook. Oikawa had written on the cover, _Kou-chan's Super Awesome New and Improved Algebra Notes- Feat. The Amazing Tooru._ Then, in parenthesis below that Koushi had written: _A song by Fall Out Boy_ because he thinks he's funny. "Thanks," Koushi said quietly. "For agreeing to help me."

"You don't need to thank-"

"No, I really do." Koushi says decidedly, brows furrowed. Oikawa hears the edge in his voice and sits up, frowning. "Thank you, I really mean it."

"You're welcome," Oikawa says slowly. "Are you okay, Suga-chan?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just-" Koushi smiles sheepishly and scratches the back of his neck. "I'm not used to getting help, I guess. I'm used to giving help, not in math, obviously. I've never-" He frowns then, shaking his head. "No matter, just... thanks."

Oikawa's smile softens and he nods, bumping their shoulders together. "Don't thank me until you pass that test, Suga-chan. We've still got a lot of work ahead of us. The good news, though, is that now you have functioning notes we can start working on better study habits specific to this course. And to do that we'll use the material that'll be on the test, you'll be a math genius before you know it."

Koushi grins, eyes crinkling at the corners. His teeth were just a little crooked, Oikawa notes, but it was... endearing, more than anything. "I don't know about that," he says, "but maybe I'll have a good enough understanding that my friend's little brother isn't trying to help me with my homework. What's your major, anyway? Chihaya-sensei said you were in her physics course."

"Ah, well," Oikawa's face tints slightly and he looks away. "Technically I'm a double major in biology and entomology."

"Bugs? What do bugs have to do with physics?"

"Oh, absolutely nothing." Oikawa confirms, grinning. "I've always adored space, but I'd never want a career in it So I'm taking an astronomy course and a physics course to have all the fun with learning and none of the disappointment when I graduate and find out there's absolutely nothing I can do with my degree without moving to America. And, you know, gross. So bugs!"

"I see," Koushi smiles, already gathering his papers. "Bugs are pretty cool, but I prefer books."

"Yes, I see that." Oikawa grins and pushes himself to his feet before offering his hand to Koushi, helping him up. "What are you wanting to do with that degree, anyway?"

"I want to teach literature," Koushi explains, "High school level. Not bugs, but a different kind of pest."

"One that requires much more patience." Oikawa agrees, nodding solemnly. "High schoolers are a different breed, if I met high schooler me in the street I would punch him in the face."

"Were you that annoying?"

"Oh, no, I was absolutely no different than I am now. But if high schooler me got punched in the face high schooler Iwa-chan would be forced to be nice to me, I'm always up for doing favors for myself~" Koushi stares at Oikawa for a moment, until the brunet finally caves and backtracks with a laugh. "Sorry, sorry. I'm kidding. If you knew Iwa-chan you'd understand."

"So this Iwa-chan is your..." Koushi trails off, eyebrows raised expectantly. 

"My best friend and doting mother so long as my actual mother is in a different city." Oikawa explains. "We've known each other since we were little, he's like a grumpy brother angry that I am obviously superior."

"Uh huh," Koushi nods as he puts his notebooks back into his bag, trying to hide the amused smile on his face. "Good to know. When do you want to meet next?"

Oikawa thinks for a moment, then pulls his phone out. "I'm free tomorrow, then I'm busy Friday, though if you could get me out of going to that party it would be greatly appreciated." Oikawa mumbles something about an 'Ushiwaka' under his breath before continuing. "I'm free all weekend, too. So how about tomorrow, same time, then again on Saturday?"

Koushi tries to remember if he has anything planned, then nods. "Yeah, that works. I do work, though, so I'll be sure and send you my schedule with that later."

"Great!" Oikawa pockets his phone and shoulders his bag after taking off his glasses and putting them away, then turns toward Koushi with that same warm smile. "Well, it was nice to met you, Suga-chan, and I'm looking forward to our next study date!"

"Tutoring session." Koushi corrects him.

"Same difference," Oikawa says, waving a dismissive hand. "I'll see you tomorrow, then, Suga-chan!" With that, Oikawa waved and left the room. 

Koushi was relatively optimistic for the outcome of the tutoring, but there was a part of his brain that was entirely unhelpful with it's protests of _But what if it's not enough._ Those thoughts are no match for a night of well deserved ice cream and bad movies, though, so he just smiles to himself and walks out. 

\--

**To: deadchi**   
what are the moral ramifications of negativity begoning myself

**From: deadchi**   
suga no

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for taking the time to read! Kudos and comments are always appreciated!  
> come scream with/at me on tumblr dot com: polaroidsandpeachtea
> 
> this is very self-indulgent i'm sorry lmao. i apparently have a bit of an obsession with the whole tutor thing, i might be projecting idk  
> anyways! this makes me happy so far so I'm gonna let it stay
> 
> please let me know if i missed any typos in my proof read,, i'm so tired


End file.
